This invention relates to an article such as a stuffed toy having at least one movable member, more particularly one or more facial features, constructed of flexible material and movable to either of at least two alternate positions to alter the appearance of the one or more features of the stuffed toy.
Many toys such as dolls and other types of figurines have positionable or movable features, including limbs and/or facial features. U.S. Pat. No. 3,462,876 to Kirschenmann, U.S. Pat. No. 4,094,092 to Bunin, U.S. Pat. No. 3,125,826 to Ostrander, U.S. Pat. No. 3,916,562 to Burkhart, U.S. Pat. No. 3,699,707 to Sapkus, U.S. Pat. No. 5,399,115 to Arad et al., and U.S. Pat. No. 4,560,363 to Bjorklund et al. disclose examples of dolls or figurines which provide for changing facial expressions, including movable eyes and eyelids. Other examples of dolls with movable eye features are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,132,770 to Freed and U.S. Pat. No. 3,086,318 to Brudney wherein movable hemispherical shells or partial spheres, respectively, are used in the eye element to produce a movable eyelid effect.
Canadian Patent No. 1,223,735 discloses a stuffed toy changeable from an initial appearance in which various features are visible to a second appearance in which some of the features are precluded from view. The transformation is achieved by inverting an elastically expandable pocket integral with the covering of the toy so that the appendages and other features are contained within the pocket and the toy assumes a ball-like shape. U.S. Pat. No. 4,648,851 to Rosenberg teaches a stuffed animal with facial features that may be obscured by manipulating the loose outer skin about the face area.
Most stuffed toys do not have independently movable parts or changeable features. They are primarily soft and cuddly toys with permanently affixed features that are meant to be played with, embraced and loved by their owners. Although toys with moveable features are known in the art, there are drawbacks associated with the functioning of such devices. The dolls and figures disclosed in the preceding noted patents exhibit either expensive and complex internal mechanisms that may be inappropriate for all toys, particularly stuffed toys, or are capable of only limited transformation such as a complete inversion or movement of features from one visible position to another visible position.